Influences of Age, Obesity, and Adverse Drug Effects on Balance and Mobility Testing Scores in Ambulatory Older Adults.
Eric Anson, Elizabeth Thompson, Brian L Odle and 3 others
PMID 28079635WHAT IT FOUND
Age, body mass index, and a new drug index score predicted poorer balance and mobility test results in 57 older adults.
The drug index worked even when standard fall-risk tests showed normal scores, suggesting it may help identify hidden risks.
Key findings
01Age, BMI, and the Quantitative Drug Index (QDI) were significant predictors for BESTest, BBS, TUG, and TUGc scores.
02Participants with a QDI score greater than 0 had significantly lower balance scores and slower mobility times than those with a score of 0.
03The drug index predicted balance confidence scores, where age did not.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study is a secondary analysis of a small sample (57 people) from a clinical trial, not a primary investigation of fall risk. The participants were highly functional; most reported no falls or only one fall in the past year, so results may not apply to patients with severe balance impairments. The QDI is a new, unvalidated index created by the authors for this study. It weights all side effects equally and ignores drug dosage and interactions. The models only explained 31% to 37% of the variation in test scores, meaning many other factors influence balance and mobility. Fall history was not included in the final regression model because too few participants had multiple falls.
Declared interests
The research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (N.I.H., Extramural) and non-U.S. government sources. The text does not list specific financial conflicts of interest for the authors.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat the Quantitative Drug Index as a validated clinical tool. It is a preliminary metric created for this study that does not account for drug dosage or interactions, and it has not been tested against actual fall rates in this population.